Adebayo Adelabu, the minister of power, has said that more than 40 percent of Nigerian electricity users now receive over 20 hours of steady electricity each day.
He shared this achievement during a review of the ministry’s progress over the last year, in conjunction with the nation’s Independence Day celebrations.
In a statement on Sunday, Adelabu credited the improvement to various “transformative actions” implemented with support from President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
He highlighted that the ministry’s efforts are aligned with the president’s renewed hope agenda, which seeks to boost industrial growth through stable electricity supply.
“The major achievement is the fact that today we generate over 5,500 megawatts of power, we transmit and distribute it, and over 40% of customers today enjoy over 20 hours of regular power supply across the nation,” Adelabu said.
“You can see that there is a significant improvement between when we came in and now, which we intend to improve further.”
Adelabu expressed the ministry’s goal to enhance this progress by year’s end, as reliable power supply remains one of the president’s major campaign commitments.
He emphasized the importance of stable electricity in developed countries, linking it to their economic success.
“This is why you see great economies like Korea, China, Europe, and North America industrialized today. Their stability in electricity supply has been instrumental to their economic growth and industrial development,” he said.
“That is why we say that we must achieve this for Nigeria as a country. We need to achieve the requisite economic growth and industrial development.”
‘STEADY ELECTRICITY SUPPLY WILL BOOST ECONOMIC GROWTH’
Adelabu reiterated the ministry’s vision to provide reliable and affordable electricity to households, businesses, and institutions.
This, he said, would enable the country to attain its desired economic growth and industrial development.
Reflecting on the ministry’s progress since the current administration took office, the minister noted that installed generation capacity has increased from 13,000 megawatts to over 14,000 megawatts.
He attributed this to the addition of new hydroelectric plants and improvements to existing infrastructure.
Adelabu highlighted key reforms, including the signing of the new Electricity Act 2023, which decentralizes power generation, enabling subnational governments to participate in the electricity sector.
He said the liberalization of the sector has opened opportunities for private sector involvement in electricity supply.
Regarding infrastructure, the minister noted the successful installation of 10 power transformers and mobile substations as part of the presidential power initiative.
He also acknowledged efforts to address the metering gap, noting that over 7 million Nigerian households remain without meters.
“Within a year, we completed the pilot phase of this project, which involved importing 10 power transformers and 10 power mobile substations. They have arrived; we have installed them, and we have commissioned them,” the minister said.
“Therefore, the electricity stability that we enjoy today is not by accident. It’s because of all these transformers and mobile substations that we commissioned and installed.
“There is the issue of the meter gap that we have. We all know that out of almost 13 million customers that we have in the industry, over 7 million customers are still without meters and are on estimated billing.
“We said this is not the way to go. We must correct this, which is why President Bola Ahmed Tinubu set up the Presidential Metering Initiative, which has the mandate of installing over 10 million meters within the next five years, at least 2 million meters on a yearly basis.
“We are making progress on this. The funds are being provided, and we will soon go into the acquisition of these meters. This would reduce the meter gap.”
‘WORLD BANK ASSISTING EFFORTS TO BRIDGE THE METERING GAP’
Adelabu also mentioned that the World Bank is aiding these efforts through the distribution recovery program by procuring and installing 1.8 million meters.
He said a contract for around 1.5 million meters has been awarded, and the meters are expected to begin arriving within the next two months.
The minister also unveiled a special electricity supply initiative for the country’s universities and other institutions, aimed at curbing frequent power outages and ensuring they continue to benefit from lower tariffs.
“We have a program which we call the Nigerian electrification program, whereby we have about 34 universities to be energized through solar energy sources. I think we have completed about 13 now, and they are almost due for commissioning,” he said.
“We have plans to do this for some of the teaching hospitals and some of our military formations.
“We have electrified over three million people through these mini-grids across the rural areas nationwide.
“We also have what we call the solar home systems that we give to each household, providing them with some point of light, some point to charge their phones, and some points for farming.”
